To expect a restaurant to be able to do a pint of milk?

[YourAgileBiscuit]

My autistic DD (13) will normally only drink milk when we are out in restaurants etc.

Some restaurants (including chain restaurants and pubs/carvery places) get a bit funny about it when she orders/asks for milk though. Even though they already have milk for the kitchen and for teas/coffees. We’ve had some restaurants outright refuse as well even though they have milk in the building.

Is it unreasonable to expect restaurants to be able to serve milk for a paying customer? Of course we pay for her milk, we are not asking for it for free!

I would say about 50% of places we go to get funny about it which I don’t understand as they already have milk in the building.

No, we wouldn’t be annoyed at that.

YABU if it is not an item on the menu, then you can't expect a big serving of it.
I can't order a half pint of pure lime cordial, even though they sell small amounts of it.

Actually you’re right in that they do order in bulk BUT if they run out they absolutely do pop out to the nearest shop to get more ! My ds works in a cafe and he has to regularly run out to grab more milk if they are exceptionally busy

Lots of people have explained the probable reason restaurants don’t want to serve milk. Not sure what you want from this post?

This is actually a good idea

I’d take the server/manager aside and explain that your child is autistic as that will help them understand why it matters. I’d also ask for a glass not a pint. A pint is a lot!

If it’s somewhere that serves lattes and milkshakes then I would expect them to be flexible, as they clearly have the quantities required to serve milk-based drinks.

If it’s somewhere that usually serves wine followed by espresso then I can understand them not providing it.

I also agree that asking for a glass of milk rather than a pint of milk is more likely to be successful.

If a parent of a child with a disability cannot buy what they need to drink but they have their own with them and a restaurant refuses for them to consume it on the premises I think that would be discrimination.

if you’re encountering resistance around half the time you’re requesting it then surely you can accept that it’s not as simple as “why won’t they serve it to me if they’ve got it in the building?” Some places are clearly happier than others to serve off-menu items (or items that they only usually serve in smaller quantities than you ask for).

does it have to be a pint though ? Sometimes amounts of food/drink have to be very specific as well as a type of food/drink if someone has autism

Think about how much profit is in a pint of milk when it’s used to make cappuccinos at £3 each. I guess they’d be making a loss to sell you a pint of milk as a drink as I’m assuming you wouldn’t want to pay £12 for it? That’s probably why they’re reluctant.

It’s milk though - you can pretty much guarantee you can get milk in any shop anywhere . People are always popping out for milk as we run out of it a lot and it’s readily available. I’d be putting customer satisfaction above milk rationing just in case we sell more coffees than expected ! It’s milk it shouldn’t be a big deal at all and as OP has said they are more than happy to pay for it and pay more than the cost of a pint of milk usually is too so I don’t see a problem .

Tell me you don't run your own business or have any understanding of how they run without telling me.

On these threads you always get half a dozen people pop up with their great ideas about someone else should run their business.

Here's the thing.

They've thought of it all already. And if they don't do it, it's because they have made the business decision not to. For whatever reason.

A cafe or a chain restaurant?

I’d expect staff at a local cafe to do this. Nando’s, less so.

Best to book in advance if you can and mention it when you book. Otherwise, take some with you - they can't get arsey if she drinks something they don't serve.

It's probably because in many restaurants, particularly chain ones, the staff can't exercise discretion and go off piste and also that there probably isn't a till code for it.

As you encounter the problem so regularly, ha e yiu ever thought about taking a pint of milk with you so your dd can have it.

I work in a chain carvery pub. We have a similar situation here. We have a “glass of milk” on the kids menu. About a year ago we had an autistic regular move to the area who has become a regular in our pub, coming in almost every day. Since they first started coming in they have been asking for a pint of milk every time without fail, most times even having multiple pints of milk while here. We just put 2-3 (exact number/price depends on who serves them) kids milks through the till and charge them that and then pour them a pint of it. For the first few weeks we would run out of milk from then drinking so much milk from us but now we are used to it so we always have enough in now and don’t run out anymore now. Our GM has had to double our milk order though! That’s how much milk they drink from us! We order in the most milk out of any pub in our chain!

If you see my later post I have explained how I have direct knowledge of this scenario as my ds has to regularly go to get extra milk as he works in a cafe

It’s just MILK. I can’t believe some of responses on here . A child with ASD who needs to drink milk and OP has explained that it’s sometimes even an issue if they take their own?

My guess is it's more about not having a button for it on the till than them worrying about running out. Most places do lattes so even a big glass of milk is only a couple of them. Maybe offer to pay as if it's an iced latte without the coffee?

Ah, the Jack Nicholson Five Easy Pieces stratagem! (Although that was with a sandwich.)

I wouldn't expect them to always be able to serve a pint of milk - presumably only places that serve pints of beer have pint glasses. But a glass of milk, yes, I'd expect most restaurants that serve coffee to be able to do that. Maybe not Asian restaurants or ones that don't use much milk in their other items though.

The amount of hot drinks or other drinks that invariably require milk varies sometimes quite considerably week on week, someone asking for a pint of milk wouldn't cause issues. If tonnes of people were asking for it then it'd no doubt be added to the menu and therefore asking for it wouldnt be an issue. Let's be real the issue is most can't be bothered to figure out what to charge for it.

Costa

@OhYesImgoingtosay

This is a 13 year old not a 5 week old baby.

They don't need to have milk to sustain them.

I cannot see any grounds for insisting they are permitted to break the basic rules of a restaurant - you do not bring in your own food.

I think you are mistaking wants for needs.

I work in a resuarant, we would this no problem, if we ran out of milk we would just go to shop and buy more. Also wouldn't be bothered if you bought your own milk for your DD. Some if these replies are just odd.

I'm so glad I don't see the world the way you do. It must be very depressing.